Lewiston proposes $33.58 tax rate and 20% sewer, stormwater hikes; council to weigh cuts and frozen positions

Brian O'Malley, Lewiston city administrator, and Tracy Roy, finance director, presented a proposed fiscal-year 2025 budget at a March workshop that would raise the combined city, school and county tax rate by $1.81 — from $31.77 to $33.58, a 5.68% increase from last year. O'Malley said the projection assumes the school and proposed municipal budgets are approved as presented and that the county increase is already set.

O'Malley said municipal expenditures are projected to rise 5.5%, an increase of about $3.3 million. To limit pressure on the tax rate, staff cut approximately $9.6 million from department requests and plan to move about $6.9 million to fund balance. The administrator said he asked department heads not to request new positions and recommended freezing several positions pending final budget approval, including two police officer…